The Reason I Filed an Ethics Complaint

As Realtors, members of a Realtor Organization, we are all bound by the Code of Ethics. Going above the law. As members of this profession we see a lot of Ethics violations and from a conversation with many Realtor friends across the nation it seems most who are on the receiving end, just could not be bothered to report them.

This contributes to our profession getting the bad name it has.

Not me. If another Realtor violates our code of ethics, I will report it. It is the complainant who is required to prove the violation, not the Realtor that is being charged who has to defend it. A complaint form is filed and submitted to the required association office and any supporting information to validate it.

Back in December I had a rental home with a Sentrilock box on, in North Barrington. Any Realtor that wants to show a property must gain access via my Sentrilock box by doing two things.

Scheduling an appointment with me. I in turn confirm with the owner.

Upon confirmation must show at the scheduled time and use a Sentrilock digital card or phone app with authority code to gain access.

On the day in question the phone app was being used by a Realtor, but the not the one who booked the appointment. We all have agent id’s. So this Realtor was accessing a home without permission. In fact what was happening she was using her managing brokers access.

The violation is due to this being against the rules set between myself and my property owner client. How would you feel knowing someone was accessing your property without permission. At the time I did not know she was doing so. I thought it was the Realtor that scheduled the appointment and was granted permission to enter.

There was a documented reason I found out what was happening, sadly she did it 4 times! (Information not required, just know I had documented proof.)

Why did both Realtors ignore this Ethical conduct code? The only reason I can think of is to save money. Sentrilock is a part of our business we need and it costs about $125 a year. Maybe if you cannot afford this relatively cheap tool, you should not be in business as a Realtor at all?

My complaint was acknowledged and I had a quick chat with the complaint co-ordinator. He decided it should go to the monthly hearings panel.

Although it does a little time to get the result, I have just been advised that both Realtors are being cited and will receive a fine. I feel this is good news, the complaint was legitimate and valid. The hearing committee really could not have decided any other way, the proof was documented.

Q. Is there any chance this could cause your home to not be rented or sold if the Realtor got wind of the complaint and their client wanted to rent or buy. This has been thought of and as the complainant I have 6 months to file the complaint. In this case the showing Realtor did indeed bring the tenant, their company was compensated, my client got his property rented and THEN, only THEN was the complaint filed and upheld.

I hope this shows that some of us truly do have both our profession and more importantly our clients best interests as paramount.

About Corinne Guest, REALTOR®

Corinne is a REALTOR® specializing in relocation home buyers, luxury home buyers and buyers looking for homes with acre plus lots. She serves the Villages of Barrington and nearby neighbor communities with similar country suburban real estate.

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About Corinne Guest

Corinne is a REALTOR® specializing in the country neighborhoods of Barrington and beyond in McHenry County. She’s also the Managing Broker of Barrington Realty Company, your local boutique style, independent real estate brokerage.

Corinne has been in real estate for 13 years in Barrington. She opened Barrington Realty Company in 2008 and thrived as the market tumbled.

All the articles here are written by Corinne, her opinions may be stated and data extracted from the MLS at time of writing may be included.